Road Rage

OMG! I was driving home today and merging onto the interstate when I came across someone who was obviously having a bad day. He was the only vehicle around, and he was driving in the slow lane. Normally, if I see someone trying to get on the interstate, I move over if I can. Again, he was the ONLY vehicle on the road. He sped up to make me slam on my breaks, then proceeded to curse me out!!! Then he slowed down to stay next to me and if he was coming up on a car to pass, he would speed up to get RIGHT in front of me, then get over again. What in the world?? I was finally able to lose him by slowing WAAAY down. This world is crazy!

Mike, you can't always get to the speed limit by the time you're merge lane ends! I was actually going to ask if she was driving in MI LOL, cause that is common occurence there! It's just common courtesy. My husband is terrible though about not being out of the slow lane and actually SLOWING down for the person merging....GRRRR! It has caused several heated discussions and my threatening to drive anytime we go places together!!

There wouldn't be any road rage if they wouldn't let those stupid drivers on the road!!

Seriously, it amazes me that people on the on-ramp think they ALWAYS have to speed up to get IN FRONT OF the car on the highway. Why does it never cross their mind that's IT'S OK to adjust their speed to get BEHIND the car on the highway.

My husband is also one who thinks he HAS to move over to let a merging car in. Then he complains because the other cars won't let him over so he can let the merging car in. One time we actually missed our exit because he thought he HAD to get over, then he couldn't get back over. I keep reminding him that the merging car does NOT have the right of way, but he's a man, so there ya go!

I was just trying to merge onto the interstate, wasn't trying to "race to get in front of him" There were 3 lanes, all empty except him, he shouldn't have gotten over? Had he not sped up, I easily could have merged.

I was at the speed limit. It was a pretty long on ramp, so it's not like he couldn't see me coming. He actually sped up to meet me which is why I had to slam my brakes on.

He just sounds like an A**. Yep in MI they need to do a state wide class on how to merge. It's terrible here. People trying to merge at 50 miles an hour. It makes no sense. Then they get mad when your not moving.

just thank your lucky stars that in the u.s. roundabouts are few and are between. people can be stupid on the motorway, but roundabouts add a whole layer of cunfusion to it, people will just cut you off, even though you are actually following your lane, then act innocent when they get tooted!but yes, people that speed up/ slow down to 'annoy' you just bug me - so i overtook you, get over it!xx

It must have been something in the water today. On the way home today on a local highway (traffic lights 55mph) some lady was yelling at the guy behind her while stopped at a red light. We were watching from the right lane...crazy lady opens her door still shouting and the man in the car behind her gets out, both of these nuts are standing on the highway screaming in rush hour traffic! The light turned and they were still there causing a backup so they could scream.

I don't know about the rest of my great state of TX, but what you just described is an everyday occurrence in the San Antonio area.

My latest favorite of rude drivers is when myself and a mile of cars in front of me were stuck in a construction zone. The twit behind me started honking his horn for me to move. Where I was supposed to move, I have no idea, one side concrete barricade and the other a big Hummer.

People are idiots. I'd do a flip thing, but we can carry concealed weapons in our state.

My latest favorite of rude drivers is when myself and a mile of cars in front of me were stuck in a construction zone. The twit behind me started honking his horn for me to move. Where I was supposed to move, I have no idea, one side concrete barricade and the other a big Hummer.

People are idiots. I do a flip thing, but we can carry concealed weapons in our state.

I was gonna say that's why God gave you two middle fingers but then I saw your last sentence. FYI, people don't even need a permit for the gun to be in the car.

LOL! Or not concealed! We've just moved to TX, and were told you don't need any special license to carry a weapon as long as it's in plain sight!

In general, people are much nicer on the roads here than MI where we moved from, but we're in the Woodlands area, and in this immediate area.....not so much. Which really surprises me! After a school function last week I tried to no avail to get over in the second lane just so I could leave the school and car after car went by me without letting me in. I ended up having to go quite a ways past the school, turn around and then try to get in that lane. I was less than impressed! I guess this is why they have to pay traffic cops to direct traffic every day in and out of school.

We live in the Washington D.C. area and traffic is a mess and has a lot of bad drivers. Whenever we leave the area (my husband's family is in Buffalo, NY) we always hear the welcoming noises of cars hawking when we get close to home again. to the OP, I can't figure people like that out either, that actually focus on ruining it for someone else (like speeding up or slowing down). To put an effort in to block you, what do they get out of it? There are so many like that here too and I can't do anything else but to feel sorry for them, because they must be pretty miserable in their lives to even get the idea to speed up.

Adevag, Yea, I don't understand. I just assumed maybe he was having a really bad day. Maybe his wife just left him or he got laid off. My husband and I both have a concealed weapons permit (and I am pretty good with my 9, LOL) but I didn't have it b/c I was just leaving class. Thankfully it didn't come down to that. I am so glad I was able to lose him and he didn't follow me off my exit. He looked so angry!

I can't really sympathize with the bad drivers (we have a few, of course, but it's such a small place, there's very little traffic!) but I am sooo glad I don't have to worry about drivers carrying guns!! It would never occur to me to carry a gun with me!

Glad Texas_Rose clarified that for you!!! I didn't want to think about what was going to happen to you when you did try to explain that gun laying on the seat.

As for the driving, well, it's just part of society now, everyone thinks they are more important than the next person. Don't get me wrong, I have my own fair share of Road Rage and, as my DH calls it, Driving Induced Turetts, but it's mostly brought on by the moron/idiot/dumba@@ on their cell phone, reading the paper and drinking a cup of coffee. HELLO, people it's a car, not a lounge.

I know!! Let me make an announcement!! You cannot drive while talking on the cell phone. You may THINK you can, but you can't. While you are engrossed in your conversation, you are swerving into my lane and holding up traffic! AND mgwebb68, I have actually seen someone read a book while driving. She had it on her steering wheel and glanced up every couple seconds. WHO DOES THAT?!?

I know!! Let me make an announcement!! You cannot drive while talking on the cell phone. You may THINK you can, but you can't. While you are engrossed in your conversation, you are swerving into my lane and holding up traffic! AND mgwebb68, I have actually seen someone read a book while driving. She had it on her steering wheel and glanced up every couple seconds. WHO DOES THAT?!?

I have seen that before, on some very busy roads.

I agree about the phone thing, at least handheld. I see people in some very expensive cars driving down the road holding their phone and yapping away...if I can afford a bluetooth headset then they should be able to also. Then at least their hands would be able to drive, even if their brain was elsewhere...two out of three is better than one out of three.

We bought a perfect bumper sticker at Spencers...it looks like the oval country abbreviation stickers but the letters on it are "WTF".

I was on another forum(CafeMom) last year and when Texting became popular there were threads discussing the dangers. Some had lost loved ones due to someone texting and not paying enough attention to driving. Others were just being soo rude and saying they text all the time and drive great... People are clueless. It's not just you it's consideration for the other guy and his family... things happen that is why they call them accidents but putting your attention on a phone call or texting is nuts!!! I was in shock at the lack of concern. They were actually arguing because they didn't want anyone telling them they should not text while driving.

In some areas both phone use and texting is against the law and you get a nice $$$ ticket if caught.

My friend and I just bought the same phone. She got rid of hers because it was too hard to text with. I didn't understand because it has a full keyboard, how could it be too hard to text with? But it was because it takes both hands so she couldn't do it while driving. This was a grown woman too, not a teenager.

I see people every morning, reading the paper or a book (propped on the steering wheel), talking on the phone, and I see men shaving (now that's gross, just where do they think all those whiskers are going anyway? ewwww!).

Seriously, if my TRUCK can connect with my cell phone so that I don't have to hold it then I know some of these people in these cars have the same thing. But most of all, PAY ATTENTION!!!